After finalizing the deal with Sara, Natsuhiko had essentially completed one of his objectives in Rōran.
With the queen's cooperation, he no longer had to worry about his supplies running out during his stay here.
More importantly, with the Queen of Rōran personally watching over the Ryūmyaku, Natsuhiko could devote far more time to something else.
For example—
the promise he had made to treat Sara's illness.
Truthfully speaking, when it came to medical ninjutsu, Natsuhiko was basically an outsider.
His physique allowed him to recover quickly from injuries, but he had never undergone formal training in medical techniques. In fact, he had barely even studied the relevant materials.
Yet the reason he dared to make such a promise was simple.
He had an idea.
Or rather—he wanted to conduct a very deliberate and valuable experiment.
The secret techniques of the Senju Clan allowed him to extract vitality from trees and condense that energy into seeds.
But Natsuhiko had been wondering about something.
What if he extracted that life force…
without condensing it into seeds?
What if he simply used the raw vitality itself?
Could he inject that vitality directly into another person's body?
If so, wouldn't that essentially function as a form of medical ninjutsu?
This wasn't a new thought. Natsuhiko had considered it many times before, and his mind had wandered down numerous possibilities.
For instance—
what if he cultivated fruits that he personally had no use for and allowed others to consume them?
And once someone ate those fruits, how could he ensure they never became a threat to him?
Perhaps the fruit could contain traces of his own chakra. If so, could he use that chakra as a form of restraint… or even countermeasure?
These were the kinds of ideas constantly circulating in his mind.
Until he developed other methods, this was the only direction he could explore.
If only I had a Zanpakutō… or if I were an Uchiha. A single illusion like Kyōka Suigetsu would make things so much easier.
Unfortunately, that was nothing more than a fantasy.
A Zanpakutō was out of the question. Even though this world had its own Shinigami, they were vastly different from the ones in his memories.
As for Kyōka Suigetsu, it reminded him somewhat of Kotoamatsukami.
Something like that probably required awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.
In other words, subtly altering someone's mind or allegiance on a psychological level wasn't something he could rely on right now.
Which meant he had to resort to simpler and more practical methods.
The idea of giving fruits to others was still just a theory anyway—he didn't even have the means to test it yet.
The reason was simple.
His own chakra reserves weren't large enough.
If he couldn't even produce enough for himself, how could he cultivate extra fruits for others to consume?
But extracting life force and experimenting with it?
That was something he could try.
After all, it required very little cost.
"And if it works," Natsuhiko murmured to himself, "then I'll gain another trump card."
Such an ability would be invaluable.
Whether saving others—or saving himself—it would be an ace up his sleeve.
His body already possessed exceptional regenerative capabilities.
But no matter how good natural recovery was…
could it truly compare to directly injecting life force itself?
After considering the question again and again, Natsuhiko always arrived at the same answer.
No.
And since he already possessed a similar ability, and now had such a perfect experimental subject—
If he didn't seize this opportunity, he'd be a fool.
Because of that, Natsuhiko's life in the following days became remarkably structured.
Sara clearly understood the reality of her situation.
And the promises Natsuhiko had made gave her a glimmer of hope.
So every day, she carefully observed the changes in the Ryūmyaku and monitored its fluctuations.
Whenever she noticed anything unusual, she would send word to Natsuhiko using a messenger hawk.
This worked out perfectly for Natsuhiko.
With things set up like this, he no longer had to keep his attention fixed on Rōran at every moment. Instead, he could focus entirely on observing the two trees—and on the experiments involving the extraction of life force.
Unfortunately, the animals in this oasis ended up paying the price for that focus.
Before attempting anything on a human, Natsuhiko naturally needed to test his methods on animals first. He had no intention of going completely insane and just grabbing random people for experimentation.
Of course, if they were enemies, he wouldn't feel the slightest bit conflicted.
The problem was… he had hidden himself a little too well.
There simply weren't any enemies in this area.
"Sometimes moving too fast isn't actually a good thing," Natsuhiko thought with a wry smile.
And honestly, the results of his experiments were far from satisfying.
He could extract life force from trees even without locating the seed itself.
He could also control that energy and pour it directly into the body of an injured animal.
But the problem was that he couldn't properly regulate the amount he injected. Worse still, the life force he extracted from the trees seemed to contain… something else mixed within it.
The result was horrifying.
Almost none of the animals he infused with that power survived longer than a day.
Before long—
They started to sprout.
Yes.
Sprout.
Even Natsuhiko had been startled when he first saw it happen. And unlike most people, he could actually understand what those animals were saying.
Their agonized cries were enough to send chills down his spine.
Ironically, at the beginning, they had all seemed to enjoy the sensation.
Two days later, every animal that had been injected with the tree's life force turned completely into wood.
"Completely turned into wood… Not even edible anymore."
For a moment, Natsuhiko couldn't help but wonder if what he had drawn from the trees was some kind of natural energy.
Or perhaps something even stranger—some unknown yet incredibly pure power hidden within the trees. Something reminiscent of the vitality of Hashirama Senju.
Unfortunately, Natsuhiko had no way of knowing.
He had tried analyzing the life force extracted from the trees. And although he could clearly sense that some component within it was incompatible with living creatures…
He had no way to remove it.
"At least… not yet."
Natsuhiko let out a quiet sigh.
A full week had passed, and he still hadn't found a solution. The situation left him feeling more than a little frustrated.
He had a vague suspicion that the problem lay in the level of his bloodline development.
After all, extracting life force was part of his bloodline ability. Perhaps, at this early stage, it only allowed him to take life force—not return it.
Natsuhiko rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
If that was really the case, then he might have to break his promise.
Because if he couldn't control this power properly, then using it on Sara would almost certainly lead to the same outcome.
And Natsuhiko was absolutely certain of one thing—
Her fate would not be any better than those animals he had experimented on.
That was the last thing he wanted.
Just thinking about it left him feeling deeply frustrated.
"Is there really no other way?"
Natsuhiko spent an entire day pondering that question.
And after watching a wild boar turn into a block of wood shortly after he injected it with life force…
He was basically forced to accept the truth.
There really might not be a solution.
And faced with such a helpless situation, Natsuhiko realized that he truly had no good options left.
Breaking a promise was something Natsuhiko found rather troublesome.
After all, he had always considered himself a man with a moral bottom line.
Even if that bottom line was… somewhat flexible—capable of stretching up and down depending on the situation.
Still, when it came to matters of interest and profit, that bottom line tended to become surprisingly firm.
Unless, of course, he had never intended to keep the promise in the first place.
Right now, however, Natsuhiko felt completely helpless.
He had already stayed in this oasis for two full weeks, yet he still hadn't found any solution.
And according to Sara, the activity of the Ryūmyaku was steadily increasing. It likely wouldn't be long before he could obtain part of what he wanted.
Which meant—
Time was starting to run out.
...
"Looks like the captain's in serious trouble."
At the border between the Land of Rivers and the Land of Wind, Kakashi wandered through a small city disguised as an ordinary civilian. A black wig covered his silver hair, and for once he had removed his usual mask.
Ever since parting ways with Natsuhiko, he had brought Pakura here.
But this time, he hadn't fully followed Natsuhiko's instructions.
Instead of escorting Pakura all the way back to Konoha, Kakashi chose to wait here—at a key route connecting the Land of Wind and the Land of Rivers.
After what happened with Obito and Rin, Kakashi couldn't bear the thought of losing another person he both acknowledged and respected.
To be honest, he desperately wanted to go support Natsuhiko.
But he forced himself to suppress that impulse.
Natsuhiko possessed the Flying Thunder God Technique. When it came to escaping alone, his chances of survival were far better than if Kakashi followed him.
Besides, they had captured a Sand ninja with a bloodline limit.
A prize that big…
There was no way Natsuhiko would allow it to be lost.
So Kakashi could only remain here quietly, not daring to act rashly.
Fortunately, the city's unique geographic position made it a hub for information flowing out of the Land of Wind. That was precisely why Kakashi had chosen to stay here.
Unfortunately, the news he had been hearing lately was far from encouraging.
Sunagakure was clearly hunting someone.
And they were doing it with tremendous force.
Even the ninja forces responsible for guarding the borders had been mobilized.
Kakashi didn't need to think twice.
He already knew who their target was.
His captain—Natsuhiko.
As Kakashi continued gathering information throughout the city, he also came across some unexpected intelligence.
The reports sounded unbelievable…
Yet at the same time, strangely plausible.
According to the rumors, when Natsuhiko encountered Ebizo, the head of the Sand Village's ANBU, he had killed at least six of Ebizo's subordinates in a single clash.
And during his escape afterward, he had supposedly wiped out more than five squads.
In the following days, there were also constant reports of Sand shinobi being ambushed and sent to the Pure Land.
Kakashi couldn't tell how much of it was true.
After all, most of it was just rumors.
But he suddenly remembered something Natsuhiko once said during a casual conversation.
"The only rumors worth believing are the ones the Hokage's office never bothers to deny."
At the time, Kakashi had thought it was just a joke.
But now…
He found it difficult not to believe it.
The rumors outside had already reached this level, yet Sunagakure still hadn't stepped forward to deny any of it.
Did that mean there really was some truth behind them?
Or perhaps…
Sunagakure intended to wait until they finally captured Natsuhiko before announcing everything?
Kakashi let out a quiet sigh.
Then he continued down the street, heading toward the small house where he was currently hiding.
Kakashi politely greeted the other tenants around the courtyard before returning to his room.
Inside, he looked at Pakura, who was still unconscious and bound so tightly that moving even a finger was impossible. His expression gradually stiffened before he let out a helpless sigh.
If it weren't for this woman, he would have already returned to the Land of Wind to help his captain shoulder some of the pressure.
...
"Alright, you've passed the inspection."
On the other side of the city, a Sunagakure border guard examined a group of travelers dressed like merchants before finally stamping their travel permit.
The border was currently under full lockdown. Entering or leaving freely was no easy task.
However, the travel records of these merchants appeared completely legitimate. On top of that, the document even carried the signatures of several high-ranking shinobi from Sunagakure.
That was more than enough to put the guard at ease.
"Thank you, sir," one of the merchants said with a polite smile. Then he hesitated slightly before continuing. "But… may I ask why the security has become so strict lately? Could it be because of those rumors—"
"Rumors are just rumors. Don't take them too seriously."
The guard glanced at him before shaking his head.
"That has nothing to do with you people. Just focus on your business and stop asking unnecessary questions. Understood?"
"Y-Yes, sir!" The merchant immediately looked flustered. "I understand, sir."
"Move along."
The guard waved his hand impatiently, urging the group to leave.
Under the watchful eyes of the checkpoint guards, the merchants quickly passed through the inspection post and officially stepped onto the soil of the Land of Wind.
The merchant who had looked so nervous earlier kept the same uneasy expression while they walked.
But once they had moved far enough away—
The anxiety vanished from his face entirely.
He turned his head back and glanced at the checkpoint behind them. In the distance, groups of shinobi could be seen faintly patrolling in organized squads.
A faint frown appeared on his face.
"Commander, it seems Captain Nightingale has stirred up even more trouble than we expected," he said after observing the situation for a while. "Security is this tight… They clearly don't want him leaving. At the same time, they probably don't want anyone entering to help him either."
"These matters have nothing to do with us."
Murashima Takumi slowly lowered the veil covering his face, his tone calm and indifferent.
"We have our mission. Nightingale has his mission. Understand?"
If the shinobi at the checkpoint had known the truth, he probably wouldn't have believed it even in his dreams.
Among the merchants he had just inspected…
Was the head of Konoha's ANBU.
Murashima Takumi remained expressionless, showing no reaction whatsoever despite having just entered the territory of the Land of Wind.
This time, he had been given a mission.
A mission personally assigned by the Third Hokage.
Natsuhiko had caused quite the storm in the Land of Wind. If Konoha didn't take advantage of the situation, it would truly be a waste.
However, only Murashima Takumi knew the true details of this mission.
The other shinobi accompanying him were completely unaware.
"Commander… about our objective—"
"Assist Nightingale's escape." Murashima replied calmly. "Though our assistance will come from another angle."
"My target…"
"Is Ebizo."